prediction
\n islamabad
\nFormer cricketers Ricky Ponting and Ravi Shastri named ICC Men\u2019s Cricket World Cup 2023 finalists India and Australia to headline the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025, scheduled to be hosted by Pakistan from February 19 to March 9.
\nThe duo of Ponting and Shastri, predicted the two former champions as the firm contenders for the marquee clash, based on their recent performances in major tournaments and star-studded lineups.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s hard to go past India and Australia again,\u201d Ponting told the ICC Review.
\n\u201cJust think about the quality of players in both countries right now, and you look back in recent history when these big finals and big ICC events have come around and inevitably Australia and India are there somewhere.\u201d
\nShastri also named England and South Africa as the other two semi-finalists but remained confident in World Cup 2023 runners-up to go all the way in the eight-team tournament.
\nBut Ponting believes that hosts Pakistan, who are fresh from historic series victories over Australia and South Africa can pose a major challenge for the final two spot.
\n\u201cThe other team that is playing some really good cricket at the moment is Pakistan,\u201d said Ricky Ponting.
\n\u201cTheir one-day cricket over the last little bit has been absolutely outstanding.
\n\u201cWe know they\u2019re not always the most predictable team in those big tournaments, but they seem like they\u2019ve sorted things out a little bit.\u201d
\nThe Champions Trophy 2025, comprised of 15 matches, will run from February 19 to March 9, across three venues \u2013 Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi \u2013 in Pakistan and Dubai.
\nThe eight teams are divided into two groups. Group A features Pakistan, India, New Zealand and Bangladesh, while Group B is comprised of Afghanistan, South Africa, England and Australia.
\nHosts Pakistan will take on New Zealand in the curtain raiser on February 19 in Karachi, while the blockbuster clash between arch-rivals Pakistan and India is scheduled for February 23 in Dubai.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
prediction islamabad Former cricketers Ricky Ponting and Ravi Shastri named ICC Men\u2019s Cricket World Cup 2023 finalists India and Australia to headline the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025, scheduled to be hosted by Pakistan from February 19 to March 9. The duo of Ponting and Shastri, predicted the two former champions as the firm contenders for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-459449","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n